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After nearly two weeks of training, the first preseason game of 2015 finally kicks off for FC Dallas on Wednesday morning in Orlando as FC Dallas will face MLS debutants Orlando City SC at 11:00AM .

Whereas last year, FC Dallas took a two-week trip to UAE early in the preseason, Wednesday's game against Orlando City and Saturday's match against Jonkopings Sodra represent the only matches in this preseason that FCD will play outside the state of Texas.

Here's three things to watch for as FCD goes 11v11 for the first time against another opponent on Wednsday morning:

First run out

The first game is always a little bit of a touch and go exercise for the first teamers, and you wouldn't expect any of them to get more than 45 minutes of game time. For veterans like Zach Loyd, Victor Ulloa, David Texeira and company, Wednesday's game is a solid first chance to work out the cobwebs and begin to get back into game shape.

With the preseason tournament in Austin next weekend serving as a much more formal preseason experience playing in front of the paying fans, this week in Florida will be a little more relaxed games providing some match fitness under the sun in Florida.

Who earns a spot?

Of course, for guys trying to earn a contract, these games can have huge importance and many times the second halves are much more interesting than the first as the guys trying to earn a roster spot put their best foot forward. Oscar Pareja has a myriad of trialists and draft picks in there including Will Seymore, Jaineil Hoilett, Aurelio Saco-Vertiz, Juan Toja and Ezquiel Straccia, so look out for some of these names and how they do.

Spots are certainly limited, but with Matt Hedges and Blas Perez out on international duty, there will be some playing time that the young guys will look to take advantage of.

Preseason matches begin for FC Dallas on Wednesday in Florida so we wanted to provide everyone with a full rundown of the preseason schedule awaiting Oscar Pareja's boys. We don't have any definitive streaming schedule yet for these games and whether they will be broadcast, but once we do we will be sure to let you know on our social media and right here as well.

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What: FC Dallas at Orlando City SC

Where: Champions Gate Sports Field Complex, Orlando, FL

When: February 4th at 11 a.m. central.

Why it Matters: It’s the first match of the pre-season and the first chance for rookies, trialists and other new comers to show what they can do in live action. It’s important for the younger players to establish some chemistry on the pitch with the veterans on the team and the preseason is the time to do it. This will also be the first time FC Dallas has ever faced Orlando City and both clubs will be looking to start the all-time series on a strong note.

Why it Matters: FC Dallas’ second Preseason match up has the club squaring off with Swedish team Jönköpings- it’s hard to tell what we could see with this match simply due to the unfamiliarity between the two clubs. However, this match has some built in excitement because the teams will be playing in the state-of the art IMG Academy Stadium. It is the only time FC Dallas will play there this season and with things ramping up as we get farther into the preseason, this one could certainly see some starters.

Why it Matters: For its third preseason match, FC Dallas heads down I-35 to Austin where they will take on Columbus Crew SC in the ATX Pro Challenge- this will be the clubs first crack at tournament style play in the preseason. Expect to see plenty of starters in this one as FCD looks to take the inaugural tournament. FC Dallas drew Columbus in the semifinals and if they advance, they would play the winner of Austin Aztex vs D.C.United.

Why it Matters: The tournament style play will offer a chance to see how FC Dallas performs on short rest as less than 48 hours after the match against Columbus, they'll have either the third place or championship match in Austin. Whether they play in the winners’ or losers’ bracket for the second round, the competition will be good. If FC Dallas plays D.C. United in this match, it would be the first of two games between the clubs in a five day stretch.

Why it Matters: In what could potentially be the second game of a preseason series, FC Dallas will host D.C. United in its first home match in 2015. It is the second-to-last preseason game and by this time the rookies and trialists fates should be coming into focus but if anyone is on the bubble this could be their last chance to earn a spot on the roster. This also means we are one game away from the 2015 regular season!

For D.C. United this game has plenty of meaning as they'll be heading straight from here to Central America for their CONCACAF Champions League knockout round game against Alajuelense in Costa Rica.

Why it Matters: In their final preseason match, FC Dallas will face off against the 2014 NASL Champion San Antonio Scorpions. San Antonio plays in the NASL on the relatively brand new Toyota Field. The Scorpions are an MLS aspiring club, so they will be looking to make a statement against FC Dallas in a rematch of last year's final preseason game which ended in a 1-1 draw. This match serves as a last-minute tune up for FCD, but also as the final opportunity for any rookies or trial players to prove their worth. And of course this means that the next game will be FC Dallas season home opener against the San Jose Earthquakes!

The FC Dallas U-18 Academy is down in Guadalajara this week playing in the prestigious Copa Chivas against some of the best teams from Mexico and around the world. FC Dallas has been placed in a group with Chivas Guadalajara and Atlas from Liga MX as well as Urawa Red Diamonds from Japan and Atletico Paranaese from Brazil and matches are 70 minutes long.

The FCD travel roster is a mix of U-18 and U-16 players with many of them having experience from last year's tournament. Here is the full roster:

In the first match, the U-18s took on Urawa Red Diamonds of the J. League playing to an exciting 2-2 draw. Santiago Agudelo opened the scoring for FC Dallas with a close-range effort in the 21st minute.

FCD would take a 2-0 lead into halftime as Eric Davies scored off a corner kick to double the lead.

The Japanese side finally broke through in the 62nd minute as Mizuki Arai scored his first goal and then in the 68th minute Urawa was awarded a penalty kick that they scored to tie the match.

There are two new kids on the block in Major League Soccer for the 2015 season. While Orlando City won’t be visiting Toyota Stadium this year, New York City FC will be coming to Frisco on September 12 in our final Premier Match of the schedule.

Although this match is eight months away, there are still plenty of storylines to get excited about.

It marks the return of FC Dallas’ all-time leader in goals, assists and games played in NYCFC head coach Jason Kreis. This is also the first time he’ll face off against fellow FCD franchise icon Oscar Pareja since Oscar returned to Toyota Stadium to take the reins of FC Dallas last year.

This match could also be the return of two men who at one point donned the captain’s armband for FC Dallas. Andrew Jacobson patrolled the Dallas midfield for more than three years before joining the new New York club via trade last July, while imposing center back George John was picked up by NYC in December’s Expansion Draft after making a name for himself over his six-year career with FCD.

In addition to being the first chance to see a new club in-person, September 12 will also be FC Dallas fans’ first chance to boo NYCFC stars like up-and-coming U.S. International Mix Diskerud, former FIFA World Cup champion David Villa and (theoretically) English International and Chelsea legend Frank Lampard.

If there are this many reasons to come to this match now, think about how much you’ll want to be here in eight months!

The Liverpool legend is set to join Los Angeles after the EPL season is over and assuming he takes a few weeks off before linking up with the Galaxy, his trip to Toyota Stadium will be one of the first road games for the scouse superstar.

It's going to be absolutely fascinating to see how Gerrard adapts to life in MLS and there's no better way to introduce Stevie G to how we do things in Texas than a steamy summer Saturday night at Toyota Stadium.

You know this one is going to be sold out and it's going to be a huge game in the standings, so no reason to wait and get your tickets.

While Landon Donovan has ridden off into the U.S. Soccer sunset and Steven Gerrard doesn't arrive until later in the season, the Galaxy still boast perhaps the most fascinating forward in the league in Robbie Keane as well as Dallas-native Omar Gonzalez; so there's plenty of talent to watch on the other end of the field, but this one is all about FC Dallas.

With this game being the sixth of seven home games in the first 11 matches of the season, FCD has a chance to make a real statement to the rest of the league with this one and you definitely don't want to miss it.

Drama happens when FCD and the Galaxy play (see below). Get the best seat in the house now for the next chapter as single-game tickets are available!

The players have returned for preseason and the 20th season of FC Dallas soccer is starting to come into focus.

Today, we've released single-game tickets for seven of the biggest games of the season, our 2015 premier matches. Throughout this week we're going to be highlighting each one on FCDallas.com as we celebrate "Marquee Matchups," taking a look towards the 2015 season. Stay tuned each day this week as we highlight one of the seven biggest games coming to Toyota Stadium in 2015.

Every team is 0-0-0 with championship aspirations and whether you're looking to improve on last season and show that you mean business or simply looking to prove that the previous season was no fluke, the first game of the year is always one you don't want to miss as a fan. There's just something special about that first time you walk through the stadium gates for a new season, getting your first glimpse at the new players while also seeing those familiar faces back on the field for another year.

There's all the new signage around the stadium, the new banners outside(which will be awesome) and that first look at the new pump up videos. On March 7 at 7:30PM, it all gets started again, and let's face it: You're not missing this one.

For FC Dallas, the 2015 season marks the eighth-straight year that FCD will open the season at Toyota Stadium with the team going 3-1-3 in that stretch, having won their last three home openers.

Who can forget last year's season opener in which Oscar Pareja returned to the place he calls home to see Mauro Diaz produce his first of many master-class performances, scoring a brilliant game-winning free kick early in the second half to seal a 3-2 win over Montreal. It would be the first stanza of Mauro's brilliant March that saw him win Etihad Player of the Month while propelling Dallas to a 4-0-1 start to the season.

It's opening night. It gives me chills every time. It's going to be a huge crowd coming off last year's playoff drama. You don't want to miss this one.

Day one of the 2015 FC Dallas preseason is in the books and like every first day it was full of optimism as Oscar Pareja and FCD look to improve on their Western Conference Semifinal finish last season. Here's a little bit of news, notes, pics and quotes from today's practice.

Notes:

Today was mainly a fitness day for FC Dallas as the team works under new fitness coach Fabian Bazan. There was a notably long stretching session before the team did some more running drills. After that the balls came out and some short-sided passing drills ensued before the players went on a long run around the complex finishing up with more running inside AdvoCare Field 1.

Yep, it was basically a training full of running.

FC Dallas will continue their week of training in Frisco before departing for the IMG Academy in Florida with two practices on Saturday at 9AM and 4PM and one practice on Sunday at 10AM.

Except for the players away with their respective national teams, nearly everyone was out at training today including all the draft picks, though new midfielder Kyle Bekker was absent and is set to train tomorrow for the first time

By my count there were four trialists besides the draft picks at training today including two familiar faces in former FCD Academy standouts Jack Coleman and Damian Rosales. Jack played 17 games at Duke as a senior scoring one goal and one assist while Rosales was a four-year standout at SMU earning Second-Team All-AAC honors as a senior finishing second on the team in goals with six playing in an attacking wing back role.

Quote of the day:

"I’d say that he’s one of the best signings that we can have here. I’m very proud of the club and really grateful for the support of the ownership and front office putting into the project. Fabian is going to help our players tremendously. He’s a high level fitness coach and not just that, but he’s another assistant due to his knowledge about the game so it’s a great package to have."

-Oscar Pareja on new fitness coach Fabian Bazan

Pictures:

Here are some fanastic pics from practice courtesy of Olivia Brestal -

With Houston moving back into the western conference this season, FC Dallas will play the Dynamo three times in 2015, intensifying the tension and excitement of the Texas Derby pres. by Novo Nordisk. Two of those games will be right here at Toyota Stadium and the June 26 matchup, the first MLS visit from Houston in over two years, is our fourth Premier Match of 2015.

The winner of the series is crowned the best team in Texas and gets to take home a replica 18th century mountain howitzer cannon, affectionately named El Capitán. The games are full of passion, tension and controversy both on the field and in the stands.

Not only will this be a great rivalry match in the middle of the season, but it’s also a chance to catch two of the most dynamic forwards in MLS go head-to-head in FC Dallas’ Blas Perez and Houston Dynamo’s Giles Barnes. Both Barnes and Perez finished the 2014 MLS season with 11 goals.

The Texas Derby is, hands down, FC Dallas’ biggest and most heated rivalry. And since this match is the second of three, it is quite possible that either team could secure the series title with a win (though we all know there's really only one team that will come into this one with a chance to clinch the cannon).